Free Spirit - Sunday 8th December (Peter's Blog)

At precisely 1000 hours on Sunday 8^th December the wind returned to stir us from our torpor.  Seven days wallowing in the doldrums had dampened our enthusiasm somewhat and there was even talk of may be not reaching landfall by Christmas.  A dwindling supply of cooking gas necessitating rationing of tea, did not improve matters at all.  The wind seemingly had exhausted itself trying to batter us into submission during the violent storm that struck us during the last night of the month of November.  For three and a half days we were occupied repairing the genoa sail that, in its fury, the wind had ripped to shreds.  But then the wind continued to stay away, for day after day after day, the boat lurching incessantly in the Atlantic swell unopposed by any forward movement.  Not even sufficient breeze to fill our state-of-the-art lightweight aerofoil-assisted ‘Parasailor’ downwind sail. The famed equatorial trade winds it seemed were no more than a figment of the imagination of some crazed ancient mariner.  We could either just wallow or motor.  We did both and both were equally disagreeable.  The morning of 8^th December started like previous days with the red ensign hanging sad and limp over the stern.  While the others occupied themselves in various ways below decks I busied myself on the foredeck applying tape to sharp objects in the rigging that could catch and tear our precious Parasailor sail, when suddenly I felt a breath of air on my cheek; and then another; and then another.  A quick look at the wind gauge showed this was not an illusion.  Sure enough there were 15 knots of wind - and from the east.  As I write this it is now it is the middle of the night on 8^th December.  Carole and I are on watch.  We are zipping along at breakneck speed in 17 knots of wind under our resuscitated genoa sail. And we are starting to believe that the trade winds do exist after all and that we will make landfall in good time for Christmas.